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The following posts have all been authored by Michael Mahony

Operation Get Swole!

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Operation get Swole

[pro-player width='420′ height='315′ type='video']http://youtu.be/ilzQ1fkslfY[/pro-player]

Starting on February 1, 2013 and ending on March 29, 2013 (8 weeks) I will be conducting Operation Get Swole which will be a clean bulking mission. My goal will be to gain a lot of mass in that 8 week period of time while bringing out my six pack as well. I want to be ripped and big. I want to be in even better shape than I am right now.

This effort is going to require some major focus and effort on my part. I am going to have to take my training to an even higher level. My nutritional discipline will need to be extreme as well. The effort I will put in will result in some major changes no matter what, but my goal is to be big and lean. As a reader of this blog you will be able to follow my progress here on these very pages. I will do a weekly update with pictures starting on 2/1/2013. If you are interested in contest preparation, this is the place to come. I am a regular guy doing contest preparation. You can learn from my mistakes and benefit from everything I learn going into it.

If you are even the slightest bit interested in what someone goes through to prepare for a contest, this is the place to be. I will hold back nothing. I am going to present my findings in diary format. You will be reading exactly what I'm thinking as I go through this mission. It is going to be amazing. It is going to test my willpower. However, I will not fail. I am going to succeed and be in the shape I am looking to be in. I will bring up weak body parts through a variety of means. I will lean out to bring out the best of my physique. You will be amazed at what you see.

As you follow my progress you will learn:

  • The proper tactics and strategies for contest preparation.
  • Cardio strategies for burning fat while maximizing muscle retention.
  • Weight training strategies for maximizing muscle gain while emphasizing fat burning.
  • Nutrtional strategies for building muscle and burning fat.
  • Mental strategies for getting through low-carb dieting and intense weight training.
  • Insight into a bodybuilder's thoughts as s/he goes through contest preparation cycles.

I am ready to reveal all as I go through this process. I am an open book. Transparency is going to be the name of the game. Please comment and hold me accountable. Enjoy the video. There will be plenty more to come.

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Contest Preparation Journal – 5 Weeks Out

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Excalibur 2012

Friends, it is with great disappointment that I am announcing my withdrawal from the Excalibur contest on December 1, 2012. Certain issues have kept me from focusing completely on the goal and I do not want to give less than 100% effort to the cause. After much contemplation, I consulted with my coach and decided not to continue contest preparation at this time.

However, because I have been having great results I am going to continue training and eating the way I was during contest prep. My goal will be to bring up lagging body parts. Thus, my new focus is going to look something like this:

  • Leg  training – weekly
  • Biceps training – 3x a week ( 1 pump style and 2 heavy and use different angles every time)
  • Triceps training – 3x a week (1 pump style and 2 heavy and use different angles every time)
  • Back training – 2x a week (1 for thickness and 1 for width)
  • Chest training – 2x a week (heavy weights)
  • Shoulders – weekly (aim for hitting every head and hitting the traps at each shoulder training)

I will continue with the supplements I've been using and the regimen that has been working for me. Watch for major success in the future as I grow to a size I've never been before.

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Y3T Training System: Looking Back

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Why Y3T?

At the start of my Excalibur contest preparation cycle I utilized the Y3T system of training. I now would like to give you my impressions of that system and what, if anything, I learned from it.

First, Y3T is a system invented by Neil Hill. Flex Lewis is one of the bodybuilders who uses it on a regular basis. It involves changing up the type of training you perform every single week. It is a 3 week cycle that gets repeated 3 times for a total of 9 weeks. 

Strength Gains

I found that I made strength gains while on Y3T. I believe it is because the system cycles you through various repetition ranges and that forces all muscle fibers to be engaged during a 3 week cycle. 

Recovery

Recovery started to become an issue as the program went on. At first I was fully recovered and ready to train by the time a body part was scheduled again for training. This because frustrating because I'd have to adjust the schedule to accommodate the fact that I was not yet recovered. I believe that the system is so intense that recovery becomes more difficult. In the long run, there are ways around this as long as you are willing to be flexible with your training schedule.

Muscle Growth

I gained size while on Y3T. My back improved as did my shoulders. There is something to be said for the approach used in this program. It has heavy days, light days and extremely high repetition days. These each stimulate growth in their own unique way. What I thought about while utilizing this training is that certain body parts on me respond to different types of training. Y3T automatically handles this by including 3 types of training over the 3 week cycle. It obviously worked well for me.

Overall Impression

This program is very well thought out, but it involves a body part split. If you've been reading my contest preparation journals you will know that I am currently not sticking to a body part split type of training. I use my instincts and train what needs to be trained.  If I were to incorporate Y3T into my training schedule again, I would skip the body part schedule and just use the workouts as outlined. I would cycle the type of training as programmed into Y3T. I think that the concepts are very helpful for the budding bodybuilder. 

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3 Fundamentals for Building Bigger Arms

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Building bigger arms is most every bodybuilder's goal. With most other body parts the bodybuilder would blast away at the muscle with extra heavy weights and get results. I've personally improved my back this way. However, the arms are very different. They require a strategy in order to see growth. Today I want to discuss 3 fundamentals for building bigger arms that you can employ in the gym to see fantastic results.

Use the Correct Angle

Your biceps and triceps are made up of multiple muscles. Hitting these muscles from various angles is the only way to insure that they will grow. Most people make the mistake of doing the exact same exercises over and over. They wonder why the are not getting any results. Do your research and find out what exercises target which part of your arms.If you make sure to hit your arms from every angle possible you will see impressive growth numbers. How do you manage to hit the arms from different angles? Simple–use different benches.

Let's say you are doing French Presses for your triceps. You can do this lying or standing. If you do them lying on a flat bench, switch things up and do them on an incline bench. You could also use an incline bench as well. This will change up the angle and keep your triceps guessing. TIP: Change the angle each workout and your muscles will continually have to guess at what is going on.

Get a Good Pump

Getting a pump feels good, but it also enhances the stretch on the muscles. This causes the arms to grow by bringing all the nutrients and oxygen necessary for growth straight to the front lines. One suggestion is to do a blast workout and a pump workout. I train my arms 3 times a week. Twice I use light weights and go for a pump and the third time I use heavy weights and blast my arms hard with a lot of sets. 

Use a Wide Range of Rep Ranges

Just as it is important to hit your arms from different angles, it is important to push your arms to their limit from time to time. One way to accomplish this is to vary your repetition range. By hitting them with lower reps and heavier weights you stimulate the fast twitch fibers. By hitting them with higher reps and lower weights you stimulate the slow twitch fibers. This gives you a complete assault on your arms that will spur them on to more growth. 

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Excalibur Contest Prep Journal – 6 Weeks Out

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Excalibur 2012

Excalibur is now 6 weeks out and I am in the best shape I've been in. At the same time, I am starting to panic. Some personal issues in my life are starting to interfere with consistent training and nutrition. I have to re-focus myself and fast or I am going to let this slip away. That simply is not an option for me. These are the times that discipline followed without any thought is what I need.

I have been leaning down nicely and gaining muscle. I am looking much more ripped now than I did when I stepped on stage on April 14, 2012, yet I am 20 pounds heavier. That's thanks to the muscle I've built since April. I have worked hard at improving my physique in areas where it needs improvement. I am working certain body parts 3 times per week. I am pushing harder and harder–until this week!

This week I was not getting enough sleep. That lack of sleep took down my motivation levels tremendously. It is not something I have a lot of control over either. Just things on my mind that are keeping me from getting the job done. This is something that is very important to me and I will not allow myself to fail. I've come too far and my preparation coach has done too much work for me to allow failure to be an option.

I am now changing the way I am thinking about this. I am allowing myself to be OK with missing a couple of workouts in the past. I am not going to be OK with it going forward though. By changing my thinking and accepting that I've made some mistakes in the past week, I am giving myself permission to move forward. It will make a difference if I let it.

I am still training instinctively. I don't stick to a split anymore. I just train what needs training on a particular day, focusing on building lagging body parts. It works well. If you are tired of worrying about splits, give this method a try.

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